Fun with maps

The people behind this Web site are smart. Attract people with a fun quiz, show them what they don’t know and offer them toys to help improve their knowledge. You can take a little geography quiz on the site. I scored 9 out of 10, but was fairly lucky by having gotten this group of countries : Colombia, Germany, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lichtenstein, Malta, Monaco, Samoa, United Kingdom, and Vietnam. I know I would have done worse depending on the region of the world most represented among my randomized list. Can you guess which one I missed?

Highlight the blank section of the next row for the answer.
Latvia. I placed it on Lithuania’s area. D’oh. In case you’re wondering why I know where Samoa is located, I lived in Hawaii for a while and although the two are about 2,600 miles apart, I think it’s fair to say they’re considered regional neighbors.;)

In light of Kieran’s last post, I should probably take a moment to thank the Academy.. oh no, wait, that would be missing the point of his post.. I would like to thank the Hungarian educational system for my above-US-average knowledge of geography, although beyond shoving a lot of facts down one’s throat I did not find it to be a particularly good system. Then again, it seems like it helps me do well on random online geography quizes so maybe I’m being too critical.

Hat tip: Neat New Stuff.

2 Responses to “Fun with maps”

  1. LiL Says:

    Geography as taught in Hungary really is just a lot of facts shoved down one’s throat… I actually do very much appreciate knowing where to put most countries on my mental map when I read about them or talk to someone about them. But the unpleasantness of having had to sit through geography classes way back when outweighs the benefits – because I’m guessing I could have learned these countries just by reading. On the other hand, I often notice how good I have it that I learned history in a Hungarian high school – that has played into my research even, to some extent. I definitely had an easier time with various not-modern lit courses than many of my peers in the U.S.

  2. eszter Says:

    Interesting that you feel that way. I agree that history lessons in Hungary helped me learn familiarity with certain names and dates, but I can’t say I gained much refined analytical thinking from those lessons.. or much else either. But hey, as we’ve discussed this before, LiL, you and I seemed to have very different experiences at our high school (despite having had the same teachers in some subjects). I find that quite fascinating.